Some computing devices (e.g., mobile phones, tablet computers, etc.) may provide a graphical keyboard as part of a graphical user interface for composing text using a presence-sensitive input device (e.g., a presence-sensitive display, such as a presence-aware and/or touch screen). The graphical keyboard may enable a user of the computing device to enter text (e.g., an e-mail, a text message, or a document, etc.). For instance, a presence-sensitive display of a computing device may output a graphical (or “soft”) keyboard that enables the user to enter data by indicating (e.g., by tapping) keys displayed at the presence-sensitive display.
In some cases, the computing device may present a continuous-gesture graphical keyboard (sometimes referred to as a “combo gesture keyboard,” or “gesture keyboard”) with which the user can interact by inputting a continuous gesture that indicates a character string to be input to the computing device (e.g., by sliding his or her finger over various regions of the presence-sensitive display associated with desired keys of the keyboard). In this way, continuous-gesture graphical keyboards allow a user to enter a character string or group of character strings with a single gesture. As such, a continuous-gesture graphical keyboard may allow the user to achieve a certain degree of input efficiency.
In some examples, a computing device that provides a gesture keyboard may rely on word prediction, auto-correction, and/or suggestion techniques for determining a word from a gesture input. These techniques may speed up text entry and minimize spelling mistakes of character strings included in a predetermined vocabulary (e.g., a dictionary). One or more of the techniques may have certain drawbacks, however. For instance, in some examples, a computing device that provides a gesture keyboard and relies on one or more of the techniques may not correctly determine out-of-vocabulary character strings (e.g., words not included in a dictionary) from gesture input entered at the presence-sensitive screen. As such, a user may need to perform additional effort to enter non-dictionary character strings (e.g., names, slang, abbreviations, acronyms, and the like) using gesture input.